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| Joey Logano Faces our Hard-Hitting
Investigative Reporting |
| July 31, 2008 at 4:54pm |
The GameStop car with the Money Bunny
hood.
We managed to slow down Joey Logano, driver of the GameStop #20 car in the
NASCAR Nationwide Series, just long enough to ask him some tough questions. Okay, so maybe the questions weren't that tough,
but we wanted to get to know him better, and he was gracious enough
to oblige.
Q: When most kids are just learning to ride a bike, you were already racing Quarter Midgets. How did you get such an early start?
A: My Dad actually got me a go-kart when I was 4 years old. He owned a waste management company where I grew up in Connecticut. I used to drive around the dumpsters on the property of his company, and sometimes I would go around the dumpsters and sometimes I didn’t quite make it around the dumpsters, if you know what I mean. From there, my Dad had a co-worker who had a son that raced quarter midgets nearby and he brought me over there when I was six-years old. My Dad was always a stick-and-ball kind of guy, but
he decided to bring me over there to try it out. I tried baseball and I tried hockey, but I was never really good at either. I took to racing the quarter midgets so easily that I guess the rest is history. Ever since then all I ever wanted to do was to be a race car driver. I’m certainly living a dream right now.
Q: We’ve heard you were a good student. How did you balance school work, social life, hobbies, etc. with the racing lifestyle?
A: Even though I’ve driven race cars practically my whole life, I still think I’m a regular guy besides all this stuff. I’m a racer -- I wouldn’t do anything different ever in my life. I wouldn’t trade this for anything. I was home-schooled; so I did have to give up some things to be able to race as much as I did, but I worked just as hard at that as anything else. All my friends are the same way, we still play video games and hang out at the lake just like anyone else my age, but racing is their life and that’s the same way for me.
Q: Did you have any trouble getting your driver’s license?
A: No, I really didn’t have much trouble getting my license. I went to Georgia to get it done when I turned 16, so that’s where I got my license. I had this old Crown Victoria that I used, and the lady asked me to go 20 miles per hour really fast and put the brakes on in a certain amount of time. I slammed on the gas and lit up the tires, and I got to the braking point and just locked them down. I looked over at the lady and she was stunned. I was like, is that ok? It must have been ok since I passed the test and got my license.
Q: What are the major challenges you’ve faced making the switch to the Nationwide Series?
A: The Nationwide Series is pretty much the same as I’ve been running -- it’s just bigger and better. You have more guys and a bigger track and the challenge of running against some of the Sprint Cup regulars just about every week. That’s the biggest difference. It’s still a race car with four tires and a steering wheel. In my first race at Dover I learned that they race you really hard when you come down to game time there with 20 or 30 to go. They race you really hard but they race you really clean. They’re going to give and take in the beginning of the race but when it’s time to go it’s all out.
Q: Other drivers have noticed your composure under pressure, battling back to a sixth-place finish in Dover and returning after the crash at Nashville to win in Kentucky. Do you do anything special to remain focused, or does it just come naturally?
A: I think a lot of it comes down to confidence. You have to be confident -- if you’re not confident, then you’re kind of wasting your time. There’s a line between confident and cocky. You definitely have to be confident going into any kind of sport like that -- it’s a head game. In those situations you have to believe in yourself more than anything.
Q: Rumor has it that you are a gamer. How did you react when you learned that GameStop was going to be your sponsor?
A: When I first heard that GameStop was going to sponsor my car, I was pumped. I think having GameStop couldn’t be more perfect since I’ve always loved playing video games. When I heard GameStop was coming on the car, I was definitely thinking it was a perfect fit.
Q: What was the last thing you listened to on your ipod?
A: I listen to a little bit of everything. I lean more towards the new rock stuff like Nickleback, but have everything from Hip-Hop to get me pumped up, to Oldies and even country music. I couldn’t pick just one.
Q: If you could be a video-game character, which one would you be?
A: That’s a no-brainer. It would definitely be Mario!
Q: What is your favorite word?
A: Winning
Q: What word do you hate?
A: Second-place. I guess that’s two words.
Those last two answers sound a bit Ricky Bobby, but we'll let it
slide because Joey's such a great guy. Keep an eye on Joey Logano as
he continues to burn up the Nationwide Series, and keep an eye on
the GameStop Blog for more Joey Logano news. |
| The GameStop Olympics Close with Hopes
of Global Cubicle Peace |
| July 30, 2008 at 4:30pm |
Joe and Kevin from Customer Service
proudly display their medals with their mascot Vladimir.
Although he didn't earn any extra
points, Alex from E-Commerce shows the behind-the-back move.
We're still more than a week away from
the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, but the GameStop Olympics at
our Store Support Center in Grapevine, Texas wrapped up Friday with
some final competitions and a closing ceremony, proving that
cultural and political differences that vary from country to
country, or even cubicle to cubicle, can indeed be put aside for a
time in the spirit of unity and sportsmanship.
Before the medals could be awarded, the final day of competition had
to be completed with a video game tournament, pushing the limits of
human endurance with Guitar Hero: Aerosmith,
Beijing 2008
and Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Games. Our Customer Service Department dominated
both the Beijing 2008 200-Meter Dash and the Mario
and Sonic at the Olympic Games Triple Jump, but the gold medal
for Guitar Hero: Aerosmith came down to a one-note battle
between two other departments. Andrew, from our IT Department, jumped
out to an early lead with a near-perfect score, only missing one
note in Aerosmith's Walk This Way. Just when it looked like that
score would hold, Justin, from our Refurb Center, pulled off the upset
with a perfect note-for-note run.
During the week, we also held a side competition, the GameStop Coin
Challenge, to see which
department could gather up the most spare change to donate to the
North Texas Make-A-Wish Foundation®. Although everyone in every
department scoured their desk drawers, sofa cushions and car seats
to give generously, our Internal Audit Department won with the
highest per-person average donation, and the Accounting Department
gave the biggest departmental lump sum. When every department's
spare change was loaded into one giant piggy bank, we had raised
more than $3,100 in coins, enough to sponsor two wishes for special
kids.
We closed out our Olympics Friday afternoon with a slide show of the week's events
and an awards ceremony.
To the surprise of everyone,
the E-Commerce Department did not receive a medal for its
outstanding achievements in the field of excellence or for its
contributions to worldwide awesomeness, but maybe we'll receive that
much-deserved recognition when the Winter Olympics come around. |
| The Thrill of Victory and the Agony of
Scissors at the GS Olympics |
| July 25, 2008 at 4:23pm |
Chair curling is like regular curling
without the ice.
After two days of intense competition, the E-Commerce team is absolutely dominating
the GameStop Olympics. We scored a whopping 4.2 million points, but
we were disqualified for being too awesome. Actually, the IT
Department won the gold in Wednesday's office triathlon, which
included Chair Curling, a CD Discus Throw and a Rubber-Band Archery
event.
Archery requires nerves of
steel and eagle eyes.
Some people really got into
Rock, Paper, Scissors.
There can be only one. Brandon
took the Gold.
The battle for Rock-Paper-Scissors champion
was heated and controversial at times, but after the dust settled,
Brandon from the HR Department was the victor. The E-Commerce
Department surely would have won if they had allowed us to use the
little-known Rock Grinder-Scissor Crusher-Paper Shredder move. We
can always keep training for four years from now. We'll give you the final results of the GameStop Olympics next week. |
| The GameStop Olympics Continue with a
Flag Ceremony |
| July 24, 2008 at 11:08am |
Our Refurb department took Best
Overall Flag.
Here are the winners of the other
categories.
The GameStop Olympics continued Tuesday with
a Departmental Flag Design Contest. Many departments entered here at
the GameStop Fortress of Solitude (Store Support Center) in
Grapevine, Texas, but in the end, our Refurb Department emerged
with the winner in the Best Overall category for their departmental
representation, use of GameStop branding, and general
flagaliciousness.
Our Refurb Department is responsible for bringing you many fine
gently used consoles, accessories and more. Apparently, they receive
items that are "furbished", then they "re-furbish" them and make
them available to you. We're not sure exactly how that works, but
the final product is impressive.
Four other departments were recognized in four subcategories. Store
Operations won Best Incorporation of the GameStop Brand. Human
Resources won Best Integration of Department Theme. The Mailroom
went refreshingly low-tech with a hand-made mosaic to win the Most
Creative prize. The E-Commerce Department, who are the ones
responsible for bringing you the GameStop Blog, among other things,
won Best Use of Color, which is kind of like a Kindergartener
getting a ribbon for coloring within the lines.
Hmmm…the E-Commerce Department brings you the GameStop Blog. We
forgot to mention that the E-Commerce flag also won the Best Flag
Ever award, and it was also voted Flag Most Likely to Inspire a
Made-for-TV Movie on the Hallmark Channel. We will keep you updated
on the E-Commerce Department's meteoric rise to triumph as the
GameStop Olympics continue. |
| We Pile on the Savings when you
Pre-order Madden NFL 09 |
| July 23, 2008 at 5:30pm |
There's no need for
stripping the book here. You can easily get your
own playbook of coupons.
Give us a moment to savor that witty
headline. Okay, that's good. Anyway, pre-order
Madden NFL 09,
either online or at your local GameStop, you'll become an eligible
receiver of a coupon "playbook," worth more than $50 in savings on
some of your favorite brands. Wait; we'll need a little more time to
savor "eligible receiver" and "playbook." We are on fire today.
Before we get penalized for Delay of Game (tee hee),
suffice it to say that a lot of great deals are huddled
together in one convenient book. If you reserve your copy of Madden
NFL 09 at the store or pre-order it online and use our In-store
Pickup option, they'll shovel-pass the book to you when you pick up
your game. Okay, we've stepped over a line here. Perhaps we were
drawn offsides. Your friendly GameStop associate will not pass the
book to you because that could result in a nasty paper cut. He or
she will simply hand it to you. If you pre-order Madden NFL 09
online and choose to have it delivered, your coupon book will ship
with the game.
We're virtually down to the Two-minute Warning here. NFL training camps begin this week, and Madden NFL 09
releases August 12. Even as we speak, developers at EA SPORTS are
probably frantically putting "Favre" onto the back of a Tampa Bay Buccaneers
or Chicago Bears jersey. To pass the time until then, take a look at our
Madden NFL 09
page to review 20 years of Madden or to take the Madden NFL Quiz. |
| Let the Games Before the Games Begin |
| July 22, 2008 at 4:55pm |
Departmental representatives carry the
torch.
The relay had a couple of tense
moments.
Although the Summer Olympics in Beijing are
still a couple of weeks away, we decided to start a little
early with our own GameStop Olympics, here at the GameStop Store
Support Center in Grapevine, Texas.
We kicked off the games with a torch relay through the building,
with representatives from each department carrying the torch through
their respective areas. With Olympic music blaring on the John
Cusack Say Anything boom box, they paraded the torch through the
hallways, as fellow employees looked on and cheered. Although this could
have been a good time to find out whether our fire sprinkler system really works, somebody thought ahead on
this one and came up with a virtual torch with streamers for flames.
Overall, the relay was a big success, but, like most Olympic ceremonies, ours was not immune to
its share of tense security-related moments. At one point, a security
guard tackled a suspicious-looking Spider-man before realizing it
was just a statue, and an angry mob protested during one leg of the
relay. When we say "angry mob," we mean "a couple of good-natured
co-workers." One of them displayed a "Free Tibet" sign, but we
weren't sure whether he was picketing for Tibet's recognition as a
sovereign nation or if he was giving out free samples of Tibet.
However, in the spirit of true sportsmanship,
we were all able to put our differences aside after the torch relay
and enjoy punch and cookies together in the cafeteria. The peace may
be short lived because the competition heats up today and continues
for the rest of the week. Each department will go for the gold in a
different daily event, including a Department Flag-Design Contest;
an Office Triathlon; a Rock, Paper, Scissors Competition; and, of
course, a Video-Game Tournament. We'll keep you posted on the
results, if ESPN doesn't scoop us and get the news out first.
|
| Extreme Makeover: Facebreaker Edition |
| July 21, 2008 at 4:32pm |
Our anonymous volunteer gets his
makeover.
Now he's able to open up a can of face
break.
Playing video games is a great way to work
out some of your frustrations. There's nothing like saving the
world, or blowing it up, in the virtual realm to help ease the
stress of everyday life. We've recently discovered a feature in
Facebreaker
that can really help you blow off some steam.
Suppose you
and your best friend get in a huge fight about who was funnier — Gilligan or Urkel,
which happens at least twice a week around here. Instead of letting
the argument get out of hand until it erupts into a slap fight, you
could use Facebreaker's Photo GameFace feature to make yourselves
into custom pugilists, and settle your differences in the ring.
When we got our first look at Facebreaker back
in May, we were shown a little tease about the Photo GameFace
option, but we recently were able to see it in action with one of
our own GameStop associates used as the Guinea Pig. The
representatives at EA SPORTS took a front and profile photo of our
gracious volunteer's face and made him into a Facebreaker character.
You can see the results on the right. Basically, if you have a front
and side photo of anyone, perhaps even Gilligan or Urkel, then you'll be able to plaster that
person's features onto one of the character bodies in the
Facebreaker Boxer Factory. Then
you can customize their build, hairstyle, eye color, clothing and more.
Of course, if you don't want to build your own boxer, you can choose from one
of the many wild Facebreaker characters, each with his or her own style
and special moves. But it's good to know that you can virtually
break the face of your buddy, should the need arise. To see more
about how the Photo GameFace feature works, take a look at the video
on our Facebreaker product pages, featuring EA SPORTS president
Peter Moore getting a boxing makeover. Facebreaker ships for
Xbox 360
and PS3
September 3. The
Wii version ships
November 11.
|
| This Game Puts the "Wheeee!" in "Wee
Ninja" |
| July 17, 2008 at 5:17pm |
The Wee Ninjas of
Ninja Town just want a safe place to raise their
crops and their orange-blobby things.
The Ninja Town T-shirt design we'd love to see.
We just found the game of all games; the game
that will make all other games obsolete; the game that answers life's
deepest questions. Well, maybe it's not quite all that, but it is at
least the game that will make "Ninja Dropping" a household term. We
recently had the chance to play a demo of
Ninja Town, and we just couldn't put it down
— not just for the fun of the strategy based gameplay, but mostly
for the assortment of adorable tiny ninjas, including the
aforementioned Ninja Droppings, which can best be described as,
well, ninja poo. Okay, maybe ninja poo isn't adorable, but we did
beg the representatives of Southpeak Games, the game's publisher, to make
"I (heart) Ninja Droppings" T-shirts.
Nestled between the active volcano Mount Feroshi and the mysterious Dark Forest,
the Wee Ninjas just want a nice,
quiet place to raise their ninja kids, play with their ninja dogs
and bake the star-shaped ninja cookies, but Mr. Demon, his Wee Devil
minions, and even some Zombie Ninjas constantly disrupt the Wee
Ninjas' peaceful lifestyle. It's up to you to take the advice of the
Master Ninja and the Ninja Consultant to build some dojos to fortify
Ninja Town. You have to act quickly, because those Wee Devils just
keep coming!
Ninja Town ships for DS October 14. We recently posted a Ninja Town
video on the product page to give you a better idea of what goes
down in Ninja Town. We'll keep you posted on any further
developments. |
| More Stylish Accessories from GameStop |
| July 10, 2008 at 11:02am |
Here's one of the five
different armor designs. Click the image above to
see all five.
Yesterday we told you about the way-cool
GameStop-exclusive Mirror's Edge Runner's Bag, and we
have some more fashion news to pass along to you concerning
Too
Human. When you pre-order Too Human for
Xbox 360,
you'll get codes
to unlock five different GameStop-exclusive classes of armor. We're
sure each one is designed for a specific tactical purpose, but let's
face it, looking good is half the battle.
The new armor is sure to come in handy for Baldur, cybernetic god and protector of humanity. While his god buddies
are continually upgrading themselves with cybernetic implants,
Baldur chooses to kick it old-school style as he battles evil
machines bent on destroying humanity. The other gods look down on
Baldur as being "too human," but with each upgrade, they
become more like the machines they fight.
We bet that being "too human" will pay off for Baldur down the road,
but we may be biased toward our own species. After all, we came up
with the wheel and the Chia Head. We'll have to wait until August 19
to know for sure. Click the photo to see all five armor designs, and
just say "No" to cybernetic impants. |
| Having the Right Information Makes all
the Difference |
| July 9, 2008 at 4:20pm |
Pre-order Mirror's Edge to get Faith's
cool Runner's Bag. Final bag design may vary.
In the upcoming game Mirror's Edge, getting
the right information to the right people can mean the difference
between life and death. In a city where the flow of all information is heavily monitored, a group of
heroes known as Runners have the truth. You'll play from
a first-person perspective as Faith, a Runner who tucks important
documents into her stylish Runner's Bag, and then relies on the art of
parkour, scaling walls, sliding
down rails or even jumping from rooftop to rooftop,
to spread the word.
We also have some valuable information to pass along to
you. Not only will you be able to enjoy leaping around the city
skyline when
you play Mirror's Edge, but you can also look the part on the
streets, with your very own GameStop-exclusive Runner's Bag, when you pre-order Mirror's Edge.
You can use it to transport your top-secret documents around town, but
we suggest you
stay on the sidewalks. Mirror's Edge ships for
Xbox 360,
PS3 and
PC
November 11. You can pre-order yours
online or at your local
GameStop. |
| All the Fun of a Playground, Without
the Scraped Knees |
| July 8, 2008 at 1:20pm |
Check out the GameStop Playground for
activities, games and more. Click the photo to go there.
Here at GameStop, we care about kids. In
fact, many of us are parents ourselves. And with the possible
exception of the grumpy guy on the third floor, most of us were
children once. Because we believe it's important for kids to enjoy
games that are appropriate for them, we're introducing the
GameStop
Playground page. It's packed with fun activities, videos, mini-games
and even shopping guides for parents, including a list of
recommended games for kids.
And, unlike a real playground, our virtual playground is kid safe.
You won't find the so-called Merry-Go-Round, where you know you turn
is over when you go flying off and land face-first in the gravel. We
also don't have one of those slides that sit out in the sun until
it's hot enough for your sneakers to be welded to it. You won't find
a see-saw, either. So you won't have to worry about your friend
jumping off when you're at the top, sending you down for a
bone-jarring landing. However, that probably says more about your choice of friends
than the design of the see-saw.
So please visit the GameStop Playground from the relative safety of
your own living room, office or wherever you keep your computer.
Print out a template to make My Fashion Studio paper dolls. Learn
how to draw LEGO Batman. Try the WALL•E mini game. Or
watch a Mario Kart video. Check back often because we'll be
updating it regularly with new games and activities. But if you get free Wi-Fi at your local playground, we
would suggest that you don't visit the
GameStop Playground from the
top of the see-saw. |
| Don't Panic, but We're Running Low on
the Collector's Edition |
| July 2, 2008 at 5:15pm |
Supplies of the Warhammer Online
Collector's Edition are running low. Everybody panic!
We're not trying to incite panic,
but we feel we must warn you that our allotment of
Warhammer Online:
Age of Reckoning Collector's Editions is almost fully reserved. Even
though the game does not ship until September 23, most of them
have been pre-ordered.
This could be your last chance to get the Collector's Edition. Don't miss
your chance to get a Grumlok and Gazbag miniature that you build and
paint yourself. Act now to get a hardbound
Warhammer Online: Prelude to War graphic novel and a hardbound
The Art of Warhammer Online art book. Seize the opportunity
to obtain the bonus in-game item, The Librams Of Insight, a special-use XP-gain modifier.
Endeavor to persevere to receive bonus quests, rewards, character
titles and character customization options. We're running out of
ways to say, "Hurry up!" So suffice it to say that if you
were planning to pre-order the Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning
Collector's Edition, you should probably do it now.
So remember, it's time for action, but not time for panic. Remain calm. As slowly as you can, move your cursor
over to this link for the
Warhammer Online Collector's Edition and
click on it. Do not make direct eye contact with the Warhammer
Online Collector's Edition. It will see that as a sign of
aggression. Try to keep your breathing slow and steady because it
can sense fear. Go reserve the game now and come back. Were you
successful? Congratulations! If you weren't quick enough, you can
still pre-order the standard edition. Either way, maybe we'll run into you online
this fall. |
| Guitar Hero: Aerosmith is Now
Available |
| July 1, 2008 at 3:30pm |
Cruise in your El Camino to your local
GameStop to pick up a copy of Guitar Hero: Aerosmith.
We're just dropping a friendly reminder that
Guitar Hero: Aerosmith
is now available. Just to get in the mood, we spent the weekend cruising
around in a '75 El Camino with the eight-track blasting Toys in the Attic
over and over again. The tape switched from Channel 2 to Channel 3 right in
the middle of Sweet Emotion, but we didn't mind. If you're
old enough to remember eight-track tapes, you probably recall that,
every once in a while, a song would go silent right in the middle,
the tape would click over to the next channel, and the song would
pick right back up from there. You may also remember that
eight-track tapes couldn't be rewound. So you had to wait for your
favorite song to come back around if you wanted to hear it again.
And if you ever owned a Panasonic "Dyn-o-mite" Eight-track Player,
then we're really speaking your language.
Fortunately, Aerosmith's career has spanned decades, which means we can
all enjoy Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, even if you may not be able
to appreciate the El Camino or the eight-track tape as much as the
older folks. Head down to your local GameStop to pick up a copy,
or you can order yours online here. |
|